Rate it!

0 votes

The FIA World Touring Car Championship will celebrate its 100th race this weekend in Porto.

The second race in Portugal on July 5 will mark a century of races since the series was launched in 2005 with the inaugural race in Monza.

"We are delighted to celebrate this 100th race, which marks a milestone in the history of our championship," said Marcello Lotti, managing director of rights holders KSO.

Three out of the four registered manufacturers competing in 2009 were already in place in 2005: BMW, Chevrolet and SEAT. LADA joined the championship this year.

Of this season's 28 drivers, 10 have competed in every race since that first outing at Monza.

The WTCC have been at the forefront of innovations in motorsport, such as the move to biofuel.

As its tagline 'Real cars, real racing' implies, the WTCC offers thrilling racing and close competition - in cars based on road models.

"We are very proud of the tremendous work we have done in the past years with all stakeholders, and we are looking forward to further developing the WTCC," Lotti added.

WTCC LIVE QUALIFYING: 3pm on Saturday on British Eurosport (Sky 411 / Virgin Media 525); Also available on your PC via the Eurosport Player - click on the link under the picture to subscribe

Eurosport